Diego sat on one knee on the floor, took a heavy-looking load from the bag, and put it in the bag of leaves he was carrying. Most of them were daily necessities such as bowls and wooden knives.
"Is this okay?" Diego handed the slightly lighter bag to Ruzef.
Ruzef nodded a little awkwardly. "Thank you."
Diego walked forward without responding.
"The saintess and the crown prince will definitely catch up with us right?"
Hearing Ruzef's muttering, Diego nodded.
"Crown prince Arthdal has weapons, so they should be fine."
After the suspension bridge was cut off, they were completely disoriented because Margaret, Enoch, and Kayden disappeared in turn.
The distance to the South Island was quite far, so not only could their voices not be heard, but it was also difficult to communicate any other way.
However, it was not until Arthdal, who was still on the South Island with Yuanna, cut a huge leaf and made a star sign, then Diego and Ruzef realized what Arthdal meant: to meet at the star-marked place, as originally planned.
However, without a compass or a map, Diego and Ruzef ran into a lot of problems going on the road.
In the end, after much debate, they decided to mark the way they came and return to their original place in case they got lost. After making that decision, they started walking aimlessly toward the west of the North Island.
"To be honest, it was unexpected. I thought you'd be looking for a way back to the saintess right away," said Ruzef.
Diego answered calmly as he walked down the street. "The saintess is not weaker than she looks."
Diego glanced at Ruzef and added, "And wouldn't it be more important now to find out if Lady Floné is alive or dead?"
Somehow it sounded like 'just worry about yourself', so Ruzef twisted his mouth in displeasure.
"Lady Floné isn't that weak either. She must be alive."
His trust in her was strong, but in fact, Ruzef was also anxious. He tried to calm the anxiety bubbling up inside him and kept repeating that she must be safe.
"Honestly, isn't it true that Lady Floné's absence is greater than that of everyone else's?" Diego brought up such an unexpected remark.
He continued, "This is a dangerous island that wouldn't be strange for someone to disappear at any moment, but for some reason, I think only Lady Floné will survive. It's hard to believe she just disappeared......."
"Lady Floné is someone who gives you such trust." Ruzef smiled bitterly.
Diego nodded his head with a mixed expression.
"I hope she's safe. I mean it"
***
It's as if Eunji has a location tracker installed, he always finds where I am but doesn't know anyone else's.
I rummaged through my crossbody bag.
"Isn't there something from Kayden? If Eunji sniffs it, maybe he can find it?"
"......do you think he is a real dog?"
I had nothing to say to Enoch's question, so I put down my bag.
Eunji flicked his tongue and tilted his head. After patting Eunji's head, I eventually went with Enoch to look for Kayden again.
But forebodings are never wrong. We wandered through the forest until the sun went down, but couldn't find Kayden.
The fog had completely cleared, but it was still difficult to make out where we were in the forest.
"I think this is near Jenas' cabin. Where the hell did the cabin go?"
-awoo!
Hearing a wolf howl from somewhere, Enoch drew his sword and looked around.
"We have to find somewhere to hide tonight."
I took out the flare gun I received from Jenas, loaded it, and nodded.
"Now that monsters are roaming around during the day, waiting for the morning isn't the answer either."
"Right. There is a risk of being surrounded by monsters even in the forest or near the river."
Listening to Enoch's words, I carefully looked around the forest.
Coincidentally, the forest we are in is a jungle-like place with thick, hard-rooted trees.
I turned to Enoch. "Let's just climb a tree."
Enoch looked up at the tree. Climbing a tree won't be easy, but it's the only way.
"I think there is a risk of falling."
At Enoch's murmur, I quickly glanced around. There are many strong but flexible branches in the forest that can replace ropes.
"You can tie your body up. Even if your body tilts while sleeping, you won't fall right away."
I picked out suitable branches and held them out to Enoch.
"Could you split these with your sword?"
I quietly watched Enoch split the branches with his sword.
Eunji, who was wrapped around my arm, looked around and quietly slithered up my shoulder and poked his head out from the back of my neck.
It seems that he has noticed that I am going to use my arm soon, so he moved over to my shoulder.
'Cute.'
Enoch lifted a fairly large and long branch rope in one hand, set it beside him, and turned to face me.
While I was looking around which tree to climb, he called me in a low voice.
"Margaret."
I looked back at him in wonder. And I made eye contact with him looking at me calmly.
"I did think you might really be a different person. Quite often."
"Yes? What do you mean......."
I was taken aback, unable to finish my words, and looked at him stiffly. He stared at me with an unwavering face, then slowly lowered his head and whispered in my ear.
"I am not confused though. What I like is who you are now. I want you to know that."
His deep voice tickled my ear. I had no idea what he meant by saying this to me so I just kept my mouth shut. I wonder if my heart will stop at this rate.
I don't know how he interpreted my expression, Enoch smiled bitterly and moved away from me a little.
"I didn't ask for an answer, so please don't say anything."
In the end, I couldn't say anything.
'What I like is who you are now'. Those words lingered in my ears like an echo. This is a perfect confession that doesn't confuse you in the least.
Hearing the unexpected confession, I suddenly recalled the first time I met him.
At first, I just wanted to run away from him. I was afraid of him, not knowing when he would kill me.
At some point, I thought that he might change at any time and abandon me. So I avoided him to avoid getting hurt.
But now.......
I want to survive together, not alone.
"Margaret."
Enoch, who was getting farther away, turned to me and called out to me. He looked at me with a 'What are you doing there without following me?' expression.
Thanks to him for not asking me anything and forcing me to do anything.
I walked slowly behind him and stopped in front of the tree chosen to spend the night with.
I stepped on Enoch's shoulder and climbed the tree first, followed by Enoch. It wasn't that hard to climb a tree because I was wearing pants.
I felt a great pain in my stomach after climbing, but I didn't show it as much.
We perched on a tree branch in a fairly high position.
Then Enoch sat down with his back against the tree and tapped the space between his legs.
"Come here."
"Uh...... do I have to?"
I sat facing him and asked with a troubled face.
Pointing to an empty spot behind me, he said, "There's no place to lean on there. I can't sit in front of you either because I'm big."
I glanced behind me and fell silent. Then, after a bit of hesitation, I slowly approached him.
It's an awkward position, so I unconsciously stiffen my back. A sigh came from behind.
"You have to tie yourself up anyway, so lean on me comfortably. Then you can sleep well."
"Yeah, but......."
This isn't the first time I've had a skinship with him, but isn't this a little different than just hugging?
'It's awkward.'
I nervously leaned back. Eunji who was on my shoulder slithered down and sat on my lap. My body stiffened with tension.
'Why is my shoulder so stiff? It's embarrassing to move positions when I've already adjusted my posture.'
As I was in the middle of suffering from an uncomfortable posture and thinking about how to overcome this situation, a very low voice echoed in my ears.
"Excuse me."
Without a moment to ask, a strong arm wrapped around my waist.
"Huh?"
He lifted me slightly, pulled me closer to him, and made me lean against his chest.
My posture became more comfortable. However, it was very embarrassing because I was so close to him, and even moving for a moment made my wounds sore.
Come to think of it, I haven't disinfected my wound yet.
"Is your medicine in your bag?"
Enoch, as if he could read my mind, asked me. Even if the medicine fell into the water with the lid tightly closed, it can still be used, right?
"Ah...... yes."
I've been repeating stupid answers like a broken robot since a while ago. Meanwhile, he put his chin on my shoulder.
Hot breath touched my ear. The tension made my hair stand on end.